Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: joseffy who wrote (724156)	7/3/2013 12:07:31 AM
From: FJB	2 Recommendations Recommended By jlallen joseffy Respond to of 1575214

Here is what Huffington Post said on the case so far: And the first week's evidence dramatically supports the defense theory that Zimmerman may have been legally justified in using lethal force to defend himself. One witness heard people "running" and saw two people engaged in a struggle and "flailing their arms," another witness saw two people struggling in a "ground and pound" encounter in which Martin appeared to be on top of Zimmerman. Photographs showed Zimmerman's injuries -- a bloody nose, scrapes, lumps, and two bloody cuts to his head. Evidence also showed that Zimmerman's clothes were wetter in the back, with bits of grass. Whatever a jury makes of this evidence -- and it is still early in the trial -- it seems that under no reasonable theory could a prosecutor argue that Zimmerman acted with a "depraved mind." Why? The concept of a depraved mind in criminal law traditionally is confined to cases in which a killer does not necessarily intend to kill anyone, but engages in such wanton and heinous conduct as to manifest an utter disregard for human life. The kinds of killings that historically have supported a depraved mind murder involve shooting into a crowd of people, planting a bomb in a public place, striking repeatedly a young child, and driving a car at an excessive speed into a crowded thoroughfare. Even assuming in these instances that the actor did not specifically intend to kill anyone, he had to know almost to a certainty that he would likely cause a person's death, and his depraved conduct therefore should be considered the equivalent of murder. But bringing a charge of depraved mind murder when a death results from a violent physical encounter as in the Zimmerman-Martin fight is an unreasonable and even irresponsible exercise of prosecutorial power. Why did Corey overcharge Zimmerman, knowing that the proof would support at most a charge of manslaughter? One reason may be to give her leverage in the event the defense was interested in a plea bargain. Some prosecutors bring more charges than the evidence warrants, or higher charges than the evidence warrants, in the belief that a defendant faced with a choice between going to trial and being found guilty of the more serious charges will feel pressure to accept a plea to a lesser crime, and a lesser penalty. And prosecutors know that as many as 95 percent of defendants plead guilty. So overcharging as a coercive tactic to induce a plea usually works. Moreover, overcharging works as a trial tactic as well. Overcharging usually is a win-win proposition for a prosecutor at trial. Presumably a jury could decide to convict of the higher charge, however unreasonable such a decision might be, especially when the crime involves an unlawful killing, and the obvious sympathy for the victim. But overcharging, as every prosecutor knows, also gives the jury a chance to compromise, and a jury verdict based on such compromise allows each member of the jury to feel that some measure of justice is being done. These considerations may have motivated Corey to charge Zimmerman with murder. But there may have been other considerations, including public pressure to charge murder. Given the national and even international notoriety of the case, Corey's announcement of the murder charge, whether or not based on the evidence, and whether or not motivated by personal or political considerations, appeared to be a hugely popular decision. Since it was preliminary to a trial, and appeared to be a reasonable exercise of prosecutorial discretion, there was no excessive criticism. Overcharging George Zimmerman With Murder Posted: 07/01/2013 6:06 pm Bennett L. GershmanProfessor of Law, Pace huffingtonpost.com